Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Fair trade: changing Indian tea planations

Although not officially certified as such, Mellow Monk tea is fair-traded in that we buy directly from the grower at the grower's stated price. We do not buy from wholesalers, warehousers, or any other middlemen. Selling directly to a retailer like us allows the seller to sell at the market price. In other words, the growers, not wholesalers, have more power over what "market price" is.

In fact, the Nagata Family, the growers who supply Mellow Monk tea, sell only to other retailers, such as local tea shops and department stores. We are the only retailer outside of Japan to whom they sell their tea.

Sprawling Indian tea plantations like this one are self-contained worlds unto themselves